‘For The Longest Time, I Avoided Acting’

‘I
had
got
some
offers
from
the
South
and
most
of
them
were
negative
roles.’
‘I
used
to
think
that
whatever
I
would
play,
the
character
would
stay
inside
me
and
corrupt
my
value
system.
So
I
was
very
scared
of
getting
out
of
character,
especially
negative
roles.’

Celebrity
chef

Ranveer
Brar
can’t
get
over
the
experience
of
shooting
with
Kareena
Kapoor
Khan
in
Hansal
Mehta’s



The
Buckingham
Murders.

“It
is
something
else!”
he
exclaims
to

Subhash
K
Jha.

“At
first,
everyone
scared
me
so
much.
So
I
was
very
intimidated,
and
then
in
awe.
But
she
has
this
very
calming
presence
around
her.
She
puts
you
at
ease.

“So
after
the
first
scene,
I
lost
that
intimidation
and
settled
in
easily.
I
learned
a
lot
from
her,
like
the
ability
to
switch
on
and
off,
the
knack
of
how
to
compose
yourself
before
a
scene.

“She’s
amazing
at
composing
herself
for
the
camera.
And
that
presence
that
she
has,
I
learned
a
lot.
I
mean,
I’m
still
learning.”

Ranveer
is
familiar
with
the
Indian
Diaspora
which
Mehta’s
murder
mystery
tackles.

“I’ve
lived
in
the
US
for
12
years,
in
Boston.
Six-seven
years
out
of
that
was
in
an
Indian/South
Asian
neighbourhood.
So
I
am
aware
of
the
life,
the
angst,
the
fight,
you
know,
to
hold
on
to
your
identity.

“I
am
aware
of
an
Indian’s
life
outside
of
India,
and
that
helped
me
to
express
myself
better.
I
don’t
really
plan
much
in
life.
Even
the
celebrity
chef
status
wasn’t
planned.
It’s
just
my
parents’
blessings
and
good
fortune.

“I
have
been
cooking
professionally
for
30
years,
so
I
am
inseparable
from
my
relationship
to
food.
So
now,
how
do
you
extend
that
part
of
yourself
and
become
richer
in
life?

“Acting
is
one
way.
And
poetry.
I
write
a
lot
of
poetry.
I
write
in
Hindi
and
secondly,
this
is
acting.
They
make
me
a
better
Ranveer.”

Hansal
and
Ranveer
bonded
over
cooking.

“He
saw
a
Nihari
recipe
on
the
Net;
he
must
have
been
looking
for
it.
After
seeing
the
recipe,
he
called
a
friend
and
told
him
that
there
is
an
actor
in
this
boy.
So
our
secret
joke
is
that
you
wanted
a
Nihari,
that’s
why
you
cast
Ranveer.

“His
love
for
food
helps
me
as
an
actor.
I
was
15-16
years
old
when
I
decided
that
I
don’t
want
to
do
the
normal
thing.
At
that
time,
medicine
and
engineering
were
the
normal
careers.
Or
else,
the
civil
services.
I
didn’t
want
to
do
any
of
that.

“My
dad
was
an
aeronautical
engineer,
a
gold
medalist
from
IIT
Kanpur.
In
the
late
’80s,
you
really
were
not
given
a
choice
and
I
didn’t
want
to
do
what
everybody
else
was
doing.

“In
Lucknow,
food
is
an
interesting
option.
It’s
insanely
eccentric
and
I
loved
it.
That
is
how
I
got
connected
to
food.
I
first
made
food
on
the
streets
of
Lucknow.
Then
I
went
on
to
culinary
college.”

Ranveer
says
there
is
no
rivalry
with
other
celebrity
chefs
like
Vikas
Khanna
and
Sanjeev
Kapoor.

“We
have
spent
the
beginning
of
our
careers
together
struggling.
We
have
worked
together
at
some
point
and
gone
through
tough
times
in
hotels.
We
know
each
other
for
20-plus
years.

“Vikas
tops
the
list
celebrity
chefs
who
get
a
lot
of
love.
I
have
known
him
and
been
working
with
him
for
12
years
now.

“For
the
longest
time,
I
avoided
acting.
I
had
got
some
offers
from
the
South
and
most
of
them
were
negative
roles.
I
never
acted
in
my
life;
I
didn’t
even
do
drama
in
school.
I
used
to
think
that
whatever
I
would
play,
the
character
would
stay
inside
me
and
corrupt
my
value
system.
So
I
was
very
scared
of
getting
out
of
character,
especially
negative
roles.”

Ranveer
started
his
acting
career
as
a
gay
character
in
Hansal
Mehta’s
short
film,

Baai
from
the

Modern
Love
Mumbai
anthology.

“Hansal
sir
cajoled
me
into
it.
There
was
a
little
sense
of
comfort
as
I
was
playing
a
chef.
But
there
was
a
big
sense
of
discomfort
as
it
addressed
the
LGBTQ
community.
But
it
was
good
discomfort,
the
same
kind
of
discomfort
as
when
I
first
thought
of
becoming
a
chef.
It
was
not
a
normal
choice.
I
felt
that
same
discomfort
again
after
30
years.

“Acting
has
taught
me
that
the
character
never
really
stays
inside
you,
but
you
hold
onto
the
things
that
you
experience
as
that
character.
You
become
aware
of
a
lot
more
corners
in
your
brain
and
heart
when
you
live
the
character.

“On
camera,
it’s
a
good
break
for
me
to
step
away
from
myself
and
be
someone
else.
I
love
to
explore
characters.
Even
when
I
cook
food,
I
cook
for
people.
I
observe
them.”